A portion of County Road 210 in northern St. Johns County will be expanded to six lanes to help alleviate traffic congestion. l Steven Ponson, WJCT News 89.9
Published on January 30, 2024 at 3:37 pm
Over the next 18 months, County Road 210 in northern St. Johns County will be expanded to six lanes from Trinity Way to Beachwalk Boulevard to help ease persistent traffic congestion.
Construction on the $15 million project started Tuesday. The project also will include new sidewalks on both sides of the road and a traffic signal at Badger Park Drive and CR 210.
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The project is designed to ease a major traffic choke point between Interstate 95 and U.S. 1. From I-95 to U.S. 1, the roadway goes from four lanes at I-95 and Trinity Way to two lanes from Trinity Way until you get to Beachwalk Boulevard, where the road expands to six lanes.
Business owners in the area are excited about the effect the project will have on their bottom line. Mike Williamson, owner of Pour Mike’s Coffee House, said his customers mention the aggravating traffic backups continually.
“I’m very optimistic that on the other end of the construction, it’ll be a net positive for us. Anything that can be done to free up that congestion is going to be very good for our business,” Williamson said.
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Northern St. Johns County has experienced significant growth over the years. Since 2022, a new Ascension St. Vincent’s hospital has opened along with Beachside High School, and more homes have been built. All of that has put a strain on the roads in the area.
Greg Caldwell, public works director for the county, said that even though the project will expand only 0.7 miles of road, the effect will be huge.
“Expanding that two-lane section pinch point up to a six-lane section, it’s going to allow the capacity improvements to really take hold and help out the community a lot,” Caldwell said.
Crews will add a second eastbound lane during construction, which Caldwell said is expected to help ease any traffic backups that might be caused by construction itself.
Another business owner, Yuyen Ngo, who owns the Berry Boba and Sugar Coat Nails businesses near Badger Park Drive, said she will be thankful to see the new traffic signal at that intersection.
“My bigger hope is safety because this is a huge safety issue for everyone out here,” Ngo said. “Making a left turn is scary out here. I’ve seen a lot of cars and a lot of near-accidents on this road.”
County officials said the traffic signal will be one of the first improvements completed. It is scheduled to be installed by summer.
The start of the project means four major transportation improvement projects are occurring in the northwest portion of the county. The others are:
- Expanding a portion of County Road 210 to four lanes from Cimarrone Boulevard to CR 210 and Greenbrier Road.
- Expanding Longleaf Pine Parkway to four lanes from Veterans Parkway to Roberts Road.
- Adding four lanes to County Road 2209 from Silverleaf Parkway to State Road 16.
